Ron Paul at Washington and Lee University

Last night, former Representative Ron Paul spoke to a packed room in Lee Chapel at Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. The building held about 500 while another location was set up nearby to provide live video feed for those unable to fit inside. The Contact Committee, the W&L Politics Department, and the W&L College Republicans sponsored the event.

Starting at 9 AM the day before, Contact began giving out tickets to Tuesday’s event. However, in a mere forty minutes, all 350 tickets allotted for early seating were claimed, leaving the multitude with the hope of snagging one of the remaining 150 seats prior to the event on a first come first serve basis.

Given Dr. Paul’s numerous contributions to the rise of the liberty movement, along with the work I did on his campaign staff in 2007/08, and the fact that this event marked his first visit to the Shenandoah Valley, I knew that I had to make every effort to attend. As I arrived slightly too late to secure one of the early tickets on Monday morning, I left Harrisonburg at about 3:30 PM on Tuesday along with fellow activist and blogger Helen Shibut of the Madison Liberty blog.

A light rain marked our departure and it continued to be our constant companion as we traveled along Interstate 81 and into Lexington. Surprisingly, the parking lot closest to the chapel still had a couple of spots open and so we were able to avoid a lengthy walk. More shocking still had to be the number of people standing outside the chapel when we arrived. Given how quickly the tickets were exhausted, I envisioned a lengthy line of people waiting until they could enter the building at 6 PM. However, due, in part, to the poor weather, we were the 7th and 8th to enter. Even though not in line at that time, there were others who were already there. For example, Karen Kwiatkowski and a contingent of like-minded folks were lingering inside a nearby building until the time drew closer.

The weather continued to degrade, but the line grew steadily and by the time that the doors opened, one could not see from one end of the crowd to the other. Although the announcement indicated that attendees would be unable to come in the building without semi-formal attire, several people in line wore casual clothing such as blue jeans; it is uncertain whether these folks were allowed admittance.

Dr. Paul’s entered the main floor of the chapel to thunderous applause shortly after 7 PM. He spoke on a wide variety of topics important to the liberty movement including, but not limited to: a non-interventionist foreign policy, the need for a sound currency and the impending financial collapse, the importance of sticking to political principles, the proper role of government, and the constant erosion of our civil liberties. After his speech, he fielded a number of questions from the audience regarding what political party best embodied his principles, the issue of abortion, religious freedom, and concerns regarding the investigation into 9/11. The entire event lasted for a little less than an hour and a half.

and note the comments. A poster at DP said they were told by organizers they had thought the chapel wouldn't fill, based on the number who came to see Guiliani.... but the comments talk about Clarence Thomas and Karl Rove. They didn't fill it either. But none of those are Ron Paul....

Last edited by sailingaway; 01-17-2013 at 12:45 AM.

"Integrity means having to say things that people don't want to hear & especially to say things that the regime doesn't want to hear.” -Ron Paul

"Bathtub falls and police officers kill more Americans than terrorism, yet we've been asked to sacrifice our most sacred rights for fear of falling victim to it." -Edward Snowden

Don't pay the media to attack Rand
Every time you click on the attack articles, you are literally paying them for attacking Rand. If you really want people to see, quote the entire article and break the link.

Me too! I have seen hundreds of his videos and speeches but there is something about listening to him live. The energy in the crowd, the chants of "End the Fed." It's electric.

Yeah, but to be honest, I envy those people last night with their clueless organizers who had a location that only held about 500 people. They got Question and Answer period -- that is where Ron truly shines to someone who watches him all the time. He brings so much to the analysis of how the Constitution and common sense would combine to carve a solution to a problem or an approach to an issue.

I was at UCLA with about 7,000 others, many of whom couldn't get in, that was the one with the pictures of all the people in the trees etc, around the stadium. It was fantastic, the line BEFORE it was fantastic with all those people drawn by a shared vision, but when he spoke the crowd threw him off, it seemed, with the roars, so he started more with liberty slogans and applause lines for about half of his speech, he couldn't really elaborate on those over the crowd noise, and only in quieter segments could he get into the deeper discussion of issues he is so great at.

I disagree fundamentally with those who think Ron isn't a great speaker, he involves you completely and changes minds and lights fires. He isn't a slogan slinging sturm und drang type politician, but I prefer that. Someone had on here a signature: "Ron Paul, the Thinking Man's Candidate' which I always liked. He makes you think, and the crowd roar makes it more difficult to have that deeper discussion.

I will always remember seeing him in that high excitement at UCLA, but I do miss the Q and A sessions he had during the campaign, in NH and Iowa, particularly.

Last edited by sailingaway; 01-17-2013 at 02:36 PM.

"Integrity means having to say things that people don't want to hear & especially to say things that the regime doesn't want to hear.” -Ron Paul

"Bathtub falls and police officers kill more Americans than terrorism, yet we've been asked to sacrifice our most sacred rights for fear of falling victim to it." -Edward Snowden